Players of games such as billiards, snooker and pool all use a cue which, for players of any skill, requires careful protection to ensure particularly that the sliding surfaces adjacent the tip of the cue are maintained smooth and accurate.
Pool halls which are particularly designed for these games often have a rack which allows the cue to be stored in a carefully protected location to avoid possibility of it being knocked or dropped.
However in recent years the game has expanded to many other locations which are not properly equipped with the racks. Thus the player often has to resort to simply leaning the cue against a side of the table when not in use. This can lead to the cue being knocked and, as it is not properly restrained, it can fall to the ground with the danger of scuffing, denting or marking the sliding surfaces.
One device has been proposed for solving this problem which provides a metal base with a screw clamp at one side. The screw clamp simply comprises a threaded pin which is rotated manually to drive a head at the end of the pin into engagement with a suitable surface on the table. On the exposed face of the device away from the table is provided a moulded receptacle of a foam material which is bonded onto the metal base. While this device goes someway toward solving the problem, the device proposed is unsatisfactory from a practical point of view. Firstly the screw clamp is difficult to apply so that it cannot be applied and removed quickly. The device is therefore more of a permanent nature but this may be unsatisfactory since it can be located in an area which causes the device to interfere with proper access. Secondly the screw clamp requires the pinching effect of the head of the screw which can mar the table. Thirdly the foam material can rapidly break down and break away from the metal base so that the device is unsatisfactory for repeated or extended use.